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Wednesday, 23 January 2013

Living, Learning, Sewing

Thank you so much to everyone who offered advice on how to improve my straight line, close quarters quilting - here on in to be known as elephant butt quilting.

Things I know now that I didn't know then. Stitch length - increase it. There is no set rule about length but it seems the preference is anywhere from 3.0 - 4.0. Always sew from the same edge. This decreases fabric drag. Adjust your tension and play a bit on a test piece before you have quilted a whole bunch, like I did. Always use a walking foot - about the only thing I was doing right.

I have increased my stitch length to 4.0 - which I would have never even considered two days ago. I tried various stitch lengths between, and I am happy with where I am at now. The results? It looks better, the quilt sews better, and I even think it feeds through the walking foot more smoothly than it did with those little 2.4 stitches I was using as I have never ever adjusted it before now. I think it deals with the drag you get at times better, but that might just be my imagination. What a difference!

The stitching from the same edge is equally liberating. I am not trying to say I have solved all my quilting problems in one go, as I will always be happily imperfect, but I have certainly improved things a huge amount I do believe.

I have also managed to tweak my tension correctly. I do wonder if using little stitches was part of the problem. I also know that if you have to rip out some stitches they come out much more easily if you had your tension incorrect. The rows of stitching I have decided to redo come out like a breeze. Probably not something I want to know about stitching I have in a quilt!

And now I await more orange thread. Then I can finish it up with all my new found knowledge.

I will leave you with some photos taken in the waning hours of daylight today, while Emily attacked a local bump hill. It is always wonderful to watch your children have a good time, and to see that they are blessed with your own level of coordination and skill. Poor child!

35 comments:

Such sweet photos of E!! It's definitely better with the seam ripper when the stitch length is increased but I have stuck at 3 today - I tried bigger and it felt a little loose to me but all our machines are different and that must play in to things. A great thread Susan and thanks for summarizing the advice - the quilt I have been quilting today is the best quilting experience I have had. Long may it continue.

Glad to hear you're making progress. I could only see the beautiful blue sky when i was first reading that, and thought how lovely the weather must have been at yours today, and then i saw the rather wrinkly backside, and realised it wasn't quite what i expected!

Another bit you might not want to know....if your are unstitching quilting, it is easiest to do it backwards. Start pulling out stitches from the last place that you sewed them. This way, if the stitching lines cross you are uncrossing in the right direction. (Please do not ask me how I know this.)

I have so many quilts in the queue and have been hand quilting them out of fear of messing up using the machine. I will test out your advice and maybe I can catch up! I am also very nervous about changing tension, but I know that on my walking foot it says to reduce the presser foot pressure to 3 from the standard 4.

Glad you are happy with the results of trying out the various suggestions on your recent quandry. Just don't forget that you have been doing amazing work to date so don't go thinking you were 'wrong' before!

Glad you are happy with the results of trying out the various suggestions on your recent quandry. Just don't forget that you have been doing amazing work to date so don't go thinking you were 'wrong' before!

I shall certainly be taking lots of the feedback on board, just goes to show we all have room for improvement, I certainly still have so much to learn! Glad to hear you have resolved most of your issues and I can't wait to see the quilt finished. :-)

Thanks, Susan for raising the issue of elephants' bums in quilts, they have become a big problem and must be eliminated forthwith. Hopefully with all the tips that eveyone has given elephants' bums will be no more.

I like the funny comments almost as much as your post Susan! I get ellie bum sometimes but so rarely go for straightline quilting - glad to know the cure! If the wrinkles disappear I might be more willing!

My last quilt I barely basted at all but smoothed out just the section I was quilting just before going under the needle - no puckers and saved loads of time and safety pinning! Ok with a small one I guess...

Hey, who cares about coordination and skill? She's having fun and loving it. I too, unfortunately, have found incorrect tensioned stitching unpicks really easily. Interestingly I was taught to quilt straight lines in opposite directions. So all mine have drag marks! I'll try same direction next time.

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